Echo in Your Eyes
by smurfette-is-on-waterskis
Summary: Set after AWE. Elizabeth has a child. They are everything to each other. In just one week he will meet William Turner, just day before Elizabeth is shocked by a blast from her past... How will this affect her son? How will this affect Will?


Echo in Your Eyes

NINE YEARS, THREE MONTHS AGO

Everyone was right. She had questioned that so much during the last hour but… they were right. She knew that she would never be able to describe the pain and the work of the last hour partially because the extremity, and partially because holding this baby to her chest and looking into his face had caused her to forget all of the hardship that it had taken to bring him into the earth. Her smile will not leave her face.

"Owen…" She says so softly that the doctor must strain to hear it.

"Owen? I thought it was William." The doctor asks.

"No, it's Owen. Owen Weatherby Jackson Turner." She says softly.

"That's a mouthful for such a little guy. You're very lucky, he worried me. He must be two or three weeks early." The doctor says with a smile running a hand over the infant's head.

"His father would be proud. He must look more like you though. He has his father's hair color. When will our William be home?" He asks.

"Just short of ten years." She says unfazed by the sad sentiment and still unable to remove her gaze from Owen.

"Well, you know that I am here if you need anything." He says.

"Actually, could you go to town and find Katherine for me?" She says. He nods and starts for the door. She grabs his arm.

"Thank you Jacob. You may have been his uncle by blood, but Will always thought of you as a father." She says. The old man smiles. His blue eyes shine with wisdom and pride. His wispy grey and white hair is pulled back into a short ponytail. She loves the man's kind disposition and since her return, he has been like a surrogate father to her.

"Your welcome Elizabeth. I'll send Katherine. You know that I am just three houses away and if you have any trouble just send for me and I'll be there. Sleep well Elizabeth, and you too young Owen." He says petting the child's head again.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"There's my little man! Sit, Owen sit!" Elizabeth says with excitement. He smiles gently and wipes sleep from his eyes.

"You know what is going to be happening in a week don't you." She asks taking another sip at her tea.

"Of course Mama, how could I forget?" He says at first with great and shameless excitement, he then composes himself and tries to sit up straighter than before.

"It's okay to be excited! You don't always have to be such a grownup." She smiles at him with a distant reminiscence that she finds herself in often.

"I hope that I make father happy." He says quietly.

"Oh darling. You worry and fuss much like I used to. He will be so proud of you. He always wanted a son. He spoke of you often. If anything will not make him happy it will be that I changed that name that we had decided on. I took one look at you though and knew what your name must be. He was set on continuing the William Turner name but there wasn't a question in my mind once I had held you." She says. She has been more distant lately.

"Maybe you could get me a little brother and name him William." He smiles with excitement. She laughs.

"Maybe. Maybe we'll have to discuss that with Will." She says.

"What would you like for breakfast?" She asks standing to look for their servant Martha.

"Do we have any tomatoes?" He asks with a smile.

"Tomatoes? For breakfast? You are the silliest boy that I know." She says holding his head to her stomach.

"They're my favorite, mama." He says pleadingly.

"Oh alright, but no use making Martha run to the garden for you. If you want a tomato, than you can run out there and see if there are any ready for eating. Don't you want anything with them?" she asks. He shakes his head no laughing at his mother's disgust.

"Run along Owen." She says lifting him from his chair and putting his back as he runs to the garden.

Elizabeth and Owen's relationship is a mystery to the people in the town. Most of the time a son and a mother are distant and most of the raising is left to a man. She and Owen are best friends. He tells her everything and they comfort each other when they miss William and other friends. No one could ever understand the bond that they have. Every night before she goes to sleep she stops to pray for her husbands safety, the safety of her son, the safety of her friends, and a curse upon herself for ever getting involved with pirates. She repeats this curse in her mind as she sits back down and holds the delicate teacup to her lips.

"Elizabeth Turner. Awake before midday, an accomplishment!" Katherine laughs at her friend. Her blue eyes shimmer in the mid morning sun. Her curly ginger colored hair is pulled into a low bun on the back of her head with short loose curls hanging against her porcelain skin. She has a perfectly curved nose. She is tall and thin and she is Elizabeth's best friend.

"Katherine Foley, how is Daniel Bigby?" Elizabeth says, the smile melting off of Katherine but growing across her own face.

"That was not very ladylike Ms. Turner. You should not ask a lady about her relationships, especially when they don't exist." She says, suddenly sounding very proper.

"Well Ms. Foley, one should never dish out what they cannot themselves handle. Besides when are we ever ladylike when we are together?" She asks. They pause for just a moment before bursting into laughter and walking into each other's embrace.

"It's good to see you Katherine." Elizabeth says.

"Where's Owen?" She asks looking around.

"Where do you think?" Elizabeth asks.

"Out with the tomatoes still?" she asks. Elizabeth nods.

"I don't understand his fascination with tomatoes. It certainly isn't from either Will or I, I think they are retched things. He still won't even drink a spot of tea either. I don't think he's a true Englishman." They both laugh.

"He is such a beautiful boy. He has your smile, and your nose. Those eyes I have seen before but they are neither yours nor Will's. I think they may just be a perfect mixture of the two." She says thinking of the young boy she calls her nephew.

"Yes I guess so. Enough on this are you still courting that Ethan Hunter?" Elizabeth asks.

"Oh that was a disaster before it started. Though I have caught Mortimer Crowley looking my way a few time at the market." She smiles.

"Katherine, do you think that you will ever settle down? Ethan was a great man, he works hard, he is well off, he cared for you he is very good-looking…" Elizabeth starts.

"He's not Maxwell. None of them are Maxwell. If you find me one like him then yes, I will settle down." She say unblinking her blue eyes magnified by tears. She inhales shakily then smiles.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore." She says.

"I'm sorry Katherine. I am. We'll just talk about something else." Elizabeth says. She knows that they won't be able to start another conversation. That's how it goes whenever Maxwell is brought into the conversation.

When Katherine was eighteen years old she was engaged to marry Maxwell Foley. She lived and breathed for him. Her eyes were dim and dead until they were looking at him. He was absolutely crazy for her, drunk with love many described them as. He had a strong jaw line and think chestnut brown hair that was not quite long enough to pull into a ponytail. He parted it on the side and tucked it gently behind his ears. He had thick eyebrows and beautiful blue eyes that matched her own. He was about six foot four inches tall and broad and strong like an ox. He was a blacksmith and all the women in town envied Katherine for catching his eye.

His nephew Nathaniel was eleven years-old and idolized him. He went with him to work everyday and would help him in anyway that he could. One day it began to storm while Maxwell and Nathaniel were at his shop. The storm came sudden and hard. Maxwell hurried to close up so that they could get home. He put some things away and in such a hurry he forgot to pour water on the coals. He led his horse from its stall. At that moment thunder clapped and lightening crashed. His horse reared and kicked the pan of coals. The coal landed in a pile of straw that surrounded the room. When he turned in shock he knocked an oil lamp onto the ground. The moment that it crashed it released the flammable liquid on the already growing fire. It was an almost immediate inferno.

Katherine looked out her window and could see smoke billowing from her fiancé's shop. She screamed and rode over immediately. Inside, Maxwell called and called for Nathaniel, but could not tell where his voice was coming from. He ran with his horses reigns in hand leading him out of the burning store. He tried to get a better view from outside. He turned to see Katherine. He walked to her quickly, planted a powerful passionate kiss on her lips, looked into her eyes, and ran back into the blaze. Katherine trembled in the rain desperately looking for her lover's silhouette. Finally with a crash he burst through the flames and laid Nathaniel on the ground. He coughed and sat up knowing that that his uncle had saved him. Katherine ran to her fiancé but before she reached him he met her gaze one last time and collapsed, dead to the ground.

"Come on Ms. Green." A family friend wraps his arm around her shoulder to lead her away. She had been standing in that spot, soaking in the rain for an hour since they had taken his body away.

"Foley. It's Ms. Foley now." She said quietly. No one questioned her. She was as close to marriage as anyone in the town, she has always been known as a widow. Her and Maxwell were bound within their hearts, and the day that he died… so did her eyes.

"Oh enough of this. Let's go see Owen." She says finishing her tea that Elizabeth had poured her in their silence. They stand and walk to the back yard. There they find Owen lying on his back holding a bloated stomach.

"What's wrong Owen?" Elizabeth rushes to him.

"To many tomatoes." He moans. Katherine laughs.

"Oh you silly thing. You brought this on yourself you know, so I will not feel bad for you." Elizabeth scolds pulling him to his feet by the hand.

"So I hear that you are going to meet someone special next week" Katherine says lowering herself to Owen's eye level.

"I am. I can't believe I am going to meet my father." He says. She smiles and pulls him into a hug.

"I love you Owen." She says quietly, just for him to hear.

"I love you too Aunt Katherine." He says.

"Come now Mister Turner, it's time for your bath." Martha a portly older woman says walking on to the lawn.

"Coming Martha." He says. He turns to Katherine and to his mother.

"Bye Katherine. Bye mama." He says placing a kiss on his mother's cheek. She watches him enter the house with a smile.

"Thank you Martha." She says and they smile at each other.

"You know what I think. I think that God gave you such a wonderful son to make up for taking your husband away." Katherine says.

"Yes, Owen is my angel but I think that it is more likely that He took my husband away as a punishment." She says unable to meet her friends gaze.

"Punishment for what?" Katherine asks.

"I've been a bad, bad girl." She says distantly looking towards the sea.


End file.
